Roam, a new musical by Alexander Sage Oyen and Michael Dovid, will get an industry presentation in New York City. Bandits Roost and Ramin Karimloo are presenting.
Based on an original concept from Dovid, the work explores what happens when a culture based on movement is forced to stop in hostile territory while attempting to perform at a festival. Oyen has penned a rock-pop-Romani fusion score to Dovid's book, set in the Romani community.
The reading will feature performances from Karimloo, Tovah Feldshuh, Lorna Courtney, Kyle Selig, John Cardoza, Maria Wirries, and Tim Rogan, along with actor-musicians Luke Chaviano, Laura Dadap, Sarah Daniels, Brandon Ellis, JT Kaufman, and Lenka Z. Rupert Hands will direct. Z is also serving as a Romani consultant.
鈥淐rafting the score for Roam has been an absolute dream come true," says Oyen in a statement. "In setting out to write it, we were afforded the amazing opportunity to go work with Roma musicians and actors in Bucharest, Romania, helping to shape the show's musical vocabulary immensely.鈥�
鈥�Roam is a universal story that explores our past, present, and future through the lens of a dynamic family and vibrant community,鈥� adds Dovid. 鈥淚t鈥檚 extremely timely to embark on a journey exploring how to overcome hate, spread light, and pass the torch forward.鈥�
The reading will also feature a band comprising Matt Brown, Adrianna Mateo, Jakob Reinhardt, Derek Stoltenberg, and Yuka Tadano. Music direction will be by Steven Cuevas, with orchestrations and arrangements by Lloyd Kikoler and vocal arrangements by Cynthia Meng. The piece includes additional book contributions by Romana Isabella.
The work was previously workshopped with Romani theatre company Giuvlipen and the National University of Theatre and Film in Bucharest.
Wojta Productions is co-producing, and ShowTown Theatricals is serving as general manager. Johnny Milani will stage manage the upcoming reading, with Brandon Allman-Jackson serving as assistant stage manager.
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